The cracks are deepening in Tasmania's woefully under-resourced Department for Children, Education and Young People, with persistently long wait times for access to school support services that will have lasting impacts on our students.
According to new Question on Notice information, as at 31 March 2026;
- The average school psychology assessment wait time for students sat at 273 days, with 2,105 students on the wait list. This means a student referred for assessment at the start of Term 1 won't be seen until the start of Term 4.
- The maximum wait time is 1,784 days, meaning students at the bottom of the list could be waiting almost five years for assessment.
- The school social work waitlist was at 332 students, waiting on average 7.5 days and a maximum of just over 12 months.
- For speech and language pathology services, the average wait time was 117 days with 472 students on the waitlist, yet some of these students could be waiting up to 14 months.
These figures show students are waiting too long for the assessment, intervention and treatment they need.
The delay in access acts as a handbrake on educational and developmental outcomes for Tasmanian students. Data shows when issues are not identified and treated early, students' critical developmental milestones are undermined, they will experience further detrimental impacts to their mental health, return poorer academic achievement, and have more absences from school.
Now, instead of fixing it, Premier Rockliff has empowered Eric Abetz to cut $228 million from DECYP and pretend there will be no consequences.
As it stands, Tasmania consistently produces the worst education outcomes of any state in the country despite the outstanding efforts of teachers and school support staff. Schools are one of the key systems for identifying these challenges, and long wait times mean too many children are missing out on early intervention when it matters most.
Minister for Education, Children and Youth, Jo Palmer has refused to explain how our schools, teachers, students and families won't be left worse off - that's because she can't.
In my time as a teacher, I watched students wait far too long for the assessment, intervention and support they desperately needed.
It is vital that the education system is resourced to meet the needs of young Tasmanians, including more school-based support and early intervention services.
We know strong public schools build stronger communities, a stronger workforce, and a stronger future.
Every dollar cut from education comes at a cost to Tasmania's future, and after 13 years of Liberal waste Premier Rockliff has put Eric Abetz in charge of massive cuts across the board.
